About

$35,418

464

TODAY IS THE DAY! ONLY 1 DAY LEFT! We need your help now more than ever!

Thank you so much for the amazing response so far! We could not have reached our goal without you. We are thrilled to be able to finish “Know How” and we look forward to sharing it with you.

Our work here is not done though - we have a stretch goal to create a companion guide and curriculum so that we can use our film as a teaching tool about foster care (for more info, scroll down to the "How Your Support Helps" section).

Together, we have the opportunity to make a real difference. Help us get to $50K so that our film can make an even bigger impact!

KNOW HOW captures the reality of life in foster care from the point of view of those living in it.

Why a film by young people in foster care? Because the system doesn’t work and the human cost of its dysfunction is one few are aware of. Consider this: a few years after aging out of foster care, only 50% of young people will complete high school or a GED, 60% will be convicted of a crime, 75% will receive public assistance, and only 6% will complete a college degree. A system producing these results needs to change.

We believe that KNOW HOW can be a pivotal step toward that change.

KNOW HOW is not a documentary nor is it fiction. It’s a hybrid approach where instead of the film being depicted by professional screenwriters and actors, it’s written and performed by a cast of ordinary foster care youth, whose performances are powerful, moving, and eye-opening. KNOW HOW brings authentic voices and unseen stories to the screen.

KNOW HOW has emerged from the efforts of The Possibility Project, (www.the-possibility-project.org), a non-profit organization in NYC that brings teenagers together to transform the negative forces in their lives into positive action through projects like this one.

NIQUANA, 21, ACTOR & CO-WRITER

A few years ago, I was sitting in my foster care agency office complaining about how bored I was with life. So the lady asked me what I would be interested in doing, and I told her I wanted to act. She told me about The Possibility Project, and I figured it would be doing Shakespeare. Instead we were acting scenes and creating a musical from our own lives.

Six months later I took the stage with 19 others; all of us had been in foster care, and we premiered a play about the things we’d been through. The stories were so powerful for audiences that afterward we talked about making it into a movie so we could reach more people.

It seemed silly to hope for something like that - until suddenly it wasn’t.

We re-wrote our script into a screenplay, rehearsed for months, and shot the whole thing in-between court dates, school, work, agency meetings and our hectic lives. Sometimes it was hard to tell if we’d finish the movie at all, but we struggled through it — we made it together.

When people used to ask me about my future, I would say “yeah, when I had a future.” I had stopped going to school, I was holding myself back. But through this experience I got my life together, graduated high school, and just completed my first year of college.

All the while we’ve still been striving to get this movie over the finish line. So here we are, so close to being totally done. All we need is your help!

PLUS: if we pass our funding goal and raise more than we need to finish the film, we can go farther. We’ve identified STRETCH GOALS that will let us do even more to reach audiences.

At $50,000: Free Lesson Plans

We’ll be able to create a curriculum for youth in schools and agencies to “teach the film” in the classroom, provide discussion points on the state of foster care in the United States, develop and share their own stories, and gain more insight on the creative process used in the film.

PLUS: If we reach $50,000, all backers pledging $10 or more will also receive a strip of exclusive “KNOW HOW” stickers. Put them everywhere, give them to friends, and help organize your communities around the movement.

At $100,000: Screening Tour Kickoff

The cast and creators of the film will go on tour, taking KNOW HOW to young people in foster care agencies and schools in major U.S. cities. We’ll sit down after screenings to dialogue with students, teachers, and foster care youth and workers; we’ll shoot short interviews with youth at screenings on the road, post them to our website, and get their voices heard, too.

PLUS: If we reach $100,000, everyone who pledges $25 or more will now get 2 T-shirts! One for you and one for a friend who is just as motivated to transform foster care.

KNOW HOW is directed by Juan Carlos Piñeiro Escoriaza, and is his first foray into narrative features. His first motion picture, "Second Skin," is a documentary about virtual worlds like World of Warcraft, Everquest, and Second Life. It premiered opening night of SXSW and won an Adobe MAX award for entertainment in 2009, and best documentary at the ACE Film Festival in 2008. Besides making films, as an activist Juan Carlos founded “White Roof Project” (http://www.whiteroofproject.org) and has acted as a mentor for NYC youth (http://www.streetwisepartners.org).

Paul G. Griffin is Executive Producer and Producer of “KNOW HOW.” He is the Founder and President of The Possibility Project and has been using the performing arts to empower teenagers for over 20 years. He also directed the original play from which the film was adapted.

Marcus Clark is the Producer and Line Producer. He most recently directed Love & Hip Hop NY Season 3 for Vh1. He is a senior producer at the creative agency/production company DECON, and is the founder of St. Marx Productions LLC.

KNOW HOW was made by The Possibility Project (www.the-possibility-project.org). We are a non-profit organization in NYC that brings teenagers together to transform the negative forces in their lives into positive action. Each year, we conduct three year-long creative programs in which 140 youth learn to build relationships across differences, resolve the difficult conflicts they face, make positive community impact, and develop a new vision of the future for themselves, their friends and their families. They learn all this while writing and then performing an original musical from the stories of their lives and their ideas for change. We have produced 22 original musicals with over 950 young people. KNOW HOW is our first film.

Since 2001 when we began, 99% of our youth have graduated from high school or finished their GED and 90% have gone on to college.

Risks and challenges

Over the last two-and-a-half years, we have taken countless risks to get this film done. There have been times we thought it couldn’t be done. Yet, we have met every challenge to date (and there have been many!). We have finished the pre-production, production, and early post-production of the movie. We’re now faced with finishing the last few steps of our film. We’re so close - we need your support.

Join us and work with us to finish our film and change foster care. Be a part of getting “KNOW HOW” out into the world where it can make a real impact and inspire change.

Support

Select this reward

Pledge $1 or more
About $1.00

POCKET CHANGE: Don't have much to spend, but want to help us finish our film? Even $1 helps make a difference, and you'll receive exclusive updates that give you a behind-the-scenes look at the production!

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $10 or more
About $10

THANKED BY NAME: Get on board and get appreciated online! In addition to getting regular backer updates, you’ll receive a “Thank You” credit on the website, our “digital action pack” (see our updates for details) and a PDF of the film’s original screenplay.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $25 or more
About $25

WEAR THE KNOW HOW: In addition to the above rewards (backer updates, thank you, digital action pack and PDF), you’ll be able to wear your support on your sleeve (and chest) with a limited-edition “KNOW HOW: THE MOVIE” t-shirt. Spread the word - and look good doing it.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $35 or more
About $35

DOWNLOAD THE KNOW HOW: Get the film and e-share the news! You will receive a digital version of the movie after the movie’s theatrical debut. You’ll also receive all of the above rewards (t-shirt, thanks, digital action pack, PDF, and backer updates).

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $50 or more
About $50

SCREEN THE MOVIE: Rally your friends and share the KNOW HOW with a home screening! You’ll receive everything listed above, PLUS a physical DVD of the movie, and a digital copy of the official “KNOW HOW” poster.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $75 or more
About $75

INSIDER: Become a promoter of KNOW HOW and see inside the project with special updates! You’ll receive everything listed above PLUS you’ll receive the official movie poster, and special “elite” membership on our website to view deleted scenes for your eyes only.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $100 or more
About $100

THE FULL KNOW HOW: Get the full arsenal of “KNOW HOW” materials to help spread the word and display your support! You’ll receive everything listed above -- the updates, the script, the T-shirt, the digital version & DVD, the movie poster, the membership, PLUS you’ll receive a CD of the official Soundtrack (see updates for more details).

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $150 or more
About $150

CREATING COMMUNITY : You can bring your community together! You’ll receive everything listed above, and a Community Screening Kit (see our updates for details) to host a screening in your neighborhood and introduce others to the film. You also get a "KNOW HOW" poster signed by the entire youth cast as well as the Director.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $250 or more
About $250

SHOW YOUR KNOW HOW: Show your support to others in style. You’ll receive everything listed above, plus YOUR NAME listed among the elite Kickstarter Backers in the film credits, an official HOODIE, and an official BASEBALL CAP.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $500 or more
About $500

ON THE MOVE: Yes, getting KNOW HOW done is possible... and you are making it happen in a big way! You’ll receive everything listed above PLUS two (2) tickets to attend the invite-only movie premiere screening with the foster care youth cast in NYC. (Travel and accommodation expenses not included.)

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $750 or more
About $750

SPONSOR: YOUR NAME as a Donor in the film credits, everything listed above, and we’ll also give the entire “KNOW HOW package” (DVD, CD, t-shirt, hat, poster, and script) to a foster care youth in your name.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $2,500 or more
About $2,500

CHAMPION: You and a guest are invited to a special “strategy day” where you’ll join the Director, Producers, and other individuals in NYC to strategize on how to get KNOW HOW seen by audiences; two (2) additional tickets to invite-only screening in NYC; YOUR NAME as a Donor in the film credits; and you’ll receive everything listed from the $500 level and above. (travel and accommodation expenses to be paid by donor).

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $5,000 or more
About $5,000

ASSOCIATE PRODUCER: A 2-day visit to The Possibility Project and an inside look at the creative process that inspired the film. YOUR NAME as Special Associate Producer in film credits; four (4) additional tickets to invite-only screening in NYC; and you’ll receive everything listed from the $500 level and above. (travel and accommodation expenses to be paid by donor).

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $10,000
About $10,000

CO-PRODUCER: YOUR NAME as Co-Producer & KNOW HOW will come to your community for a one-day event where we host a screening for foster care youth and a post-screening discussion with local foster care agencies and youth with the Director and Executive Producer. Everything listed from the $500 level and above plus; and eight (8) additional tickets to attend the premiere screening in NYC, followed by (travel and accommodation expenses paid by donor)